Is there a budgeting problem at the Cosumnes Community Service District?
https://www.elkgrovenews.net/2025/08/is-there-budgeting-problem-at-cosumnes.html?m=0
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The district (see map below) was established in 1997, and by law, the assessment can be adjusted annually in accordance with the Consumer Price Index. However, if property owners agree, they can increase the assessment rate.
On the Zone 3 webpage, the CCSD states, "Since 2009, Cosumnes CSD has made several attempts to raise the assessment to sustainable levels, but all efforts - except in three neighborhoods - have been unsuccessful. Despite aggressive cost-saving measures, funds are now critically low. Without voter-approved increases, service reductions will become unavoidable in many areas of Benefit Zone 3."
Zone 3 expenses are paid with the district-wide lighting and landscaping assessments. Benefit Zone 3 has three additional areas receiving additional funding through so-called overlay assessments.
Those overlay assessments cover Camden Estates & Camden Pointe (MacDonald Park), Perry Ranch (Perry Park), and Vista Creek (Jordan Family Park). Consequently, these three areas receive additional funding and are exempt from service reductions at other park facilities in Zone 3.
The CCSD sent approximately 4,500 postcards to property owners in Zone 3 regarding their appeal for higher assessments and promoting information sessions. At a meeting held last night at the Albiani Recreation Center, a handful of residents in attendance were outnumbered by CCSD staff members.
According to one person in attendance, the fee increase, as presented at the meeting, would rise from approximately $172 to $424 annually.
Staff members informed the attendees that the district will mail ballots later this year, seeking voter approval in Zone 3 for higher assessments. Although the district did not delve into financial specifics during the meeting, these persistent deficiencies highlight district budgetary practices.
Given that the assessments were approved in 1997 and pegged to the CPI, as a matter of regular practice, for almost 30 years, it suggests the district has not accurately budgeted expenses, most notably labor costs.
Over the last few years, the CCSD has also experienced turnover of its General Manager. Former General Manager Joshua Greene left the district in May 2023 and was replaced by Phil Lewis, who had served as the district's parks and recreation administrator. Lewis was separated from the district by a unanimous vote of the five members of the CCSD Board of Directors last October.
Interestingly, the district, which also operates and manages the Cosumnes Community Fire Department, has received extra funding from the City of Elk Grove's Measure E sales tax increase. After deducting 20 percent of that revenue to a reserve fund, 30 percent of the remaining 80 percent is directed to the CCSD, or approximately $6 million annually.
Of those allocations, based on current tax receipts, two-thirds, or $4 million, is directed to fire services, and one-third, or $2 million, is for parks and recreation. During the 2022 campaign for Measure E, where Elk Grove Mayor Bobbie Singh-Allen single-handedly convinced voters to adopt the regressive consumer sales tax increase, one of her key talking points was that the funds would be directed toward quality-of-life factors, including park maintenance.
The CCSD will conduct two more meetings regarding the assessment hikes. Those meetings will take place on September 11 at the district headquarters and another on September 25 at the Albiani Center.
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CSD has a major cash flow problem--from the funding of new parks to maintaining the ones they already have.
From a new park standpoint, CSD has long been under political pressure to keep their developer impact fees artifically low. The result is that new subdivisions are being built and the promised parks have to wait years to get built (unless a politically-savvy homebuilder gets bumped up ahead in the line). Essentially, CSD is using today's fees to pay for yesterday's parks--a classic Ponzi scheme.
Once the parks get built, they have to be maintained. The older parks are in Mello-Roos districts with lower tax rates, but then again, the parks are typically simpler and should not cost as much to maintain. Additionally, those Mello-Roos tax rate are adjusted annnually for inflation, so why do we hear every election cycle that insufficient funds exist to properly maintain those older parks?
If Old Park cost $3.00 per year to maintain and you have the documentation to justify collecting $3.00 per year from those residents in that district--and you can adjust for inflation, why do we now have a problem? But if New Park cost $5.00 per year to maintain and you are only collecting $4.00 per year, then Houston, we have problem. I am not suggesting that some Old Park funds are being diverted to the New Park, but what is the explanation for the shortfall?
CSD recently opened an upscale $31.5 million recreation center (CORE) at Morse Park that essentially was constructed with tax-exempt financing and assorted park impact funds. The etimated annual operating and maintenance cost of that facility is between $1.5-2.0 million per year and CSD expects that cost to be covered by membership dues alone (sounds like the zoo deal!)
While it can be argued that such a facility on publicly-owned property and using tax exempt financing unfailry competes with private-sector gyms, I sure hope their pro-forma works out so someday those parks that exist on the drawing boards can finally be built.
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